DOCSLIB.ORG

Cavendish? S Construction of an Empoweidng Vitalistic Atomism

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Cavendish? S Construction of an Empoweidng Vitalistic Atomism LEARNJrNG THEIR LANGUAGE: CAVENDISH? S CONSTRUCTION OF AN EMPOWEIDNG VITALISTIC ATOMISM SARAH E. MOREMAN IN 1664 UNDER THE PERSONA of a female natural philosopher and epistoler, Margaret Cavendish urges her reader that one might not spend her time more "honourably, profitably, and delightfully, then in the study of Nature" (Philosophical Letters 414). Because Cavendish's childhood education inadequately prepared her for a career in natural philosophy, she embarked on a program of self-education. This study must have been most pleasing to a woman who at an early age identified her vocation as one of reading and writing ( True Relation 205-06). Like Cavendish's kidnapped heroine of The Blazing World who "took courage and endeavoured to learn their language" (130), Cavendish established for herself the authorization to speak publicly by learning the male-dominated language of seventeenth-century science. Cavendish's scientific writing embodied one of the numerous strategies she used to gain a voice, one that might speak in public not only to formally educated men but to all of her female readers, as well. To resuscitate Cavendish's philosophical works and demonstrate the empowering nature of self-education and philosophical study for a seventeenth­ century British woman, I examine in this essay Cavendish's brand of atomism, focusing on where she takes issue with contemporary natural philosophers on debates about matter and motion, perception, and knowledge acquisition. Cavendish's natural philosophy contributes to seventeenth-century natural philosophy, and for this reason alone, it is valuable, but more important is its empowering nature for a seventeenth-century English woman denied active participation in the schools and laboratories of the day. Through her marriage to William, then the Earl of Newcastle, Cavendish gained admission to the Cavendish Circle, a group of natural philosophers associated with William and his brother, Charles. The EIRC23 (1997): 129-44 129 130 ExPLORATIONS IN RENAISSANCE CULTURE Cavendish Circle was active from the 1630s to the latter 1640s and 1650s, though Margaret did not join the group until the 1640s. Prior to the war, William and Charles opened their residence, Welbeck Abbey, to natural philosophers including Robert Payne, Walter Warner, John Pell, Marin Mersenne, Sir Kenelm Digby, and Thomas Hobbes; they corresponded with William Oughtred and Francois Derand, and they are said to have invited Descartes to England. This "little academy," as Jean Jacquot describes it (19), studied matter theory, optics (particularly the telescope), mathematics, and Galileo's works. Hobbes introduced the group to ideas he encountered on his numerous trips to the Continent, such as Galileo's theories, Italian treatises on hydraulics, and Claude Mydorge's work with telescopes Qacquot 14-26). During the upheaval of the civil war, neither William nor Charles enjoyed time to continue his studies, and, having lost hope in victory, both sailed for Germany in July of 1644 and then moved to Paris in the following year. In France, the circle was extended to embrace Margaret Cavendish, Descartes, and Roberval; from his extant letters, we know that Charles also communicated with Father de Rheita, a renowned maker of telescopes, and the German mathematician Joachim Jungius. During these years of exile, members of the group investigated current theories on telescopes, "phoranomics" or the science of movement, analytics, and the ancient materialists. They followed the metaphysical dispute about Cartesian dualism of mind and body between Descartes, on the one side, and Hobbes and Gassendi, on the other, finally witnessing reconciliation between the two parties Qacquot 175-85). Cavendish contributed to the circle's work by writing and publishing her own original brand of vitalistic atomism. As a participant in the natural philosophy of a period teeming with various opinions, Cavendish created her own complex model of matter that early on in her career much resembled Epicureanism but that she later developed into her own brand of vitalistic atomism. Believing in a natural order consisting of intelligent matter, she felt compelled to transform her materialism into a vitalistic system. Cavendish's first work, Poems and Fancies (1653), explores in poetry the principles of her early atomism. In the same year, her Philosophical Fancies also appeared. Cavendish found after some study that her early Epicurean materialism failed to explain movement and change, and so two years .
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Christopher Marlowe and the Golden Age of England
    The Marlowe Society Christopher Marlowe and the Research Journal - Volume 05 - 2008 Golden Age of England Online Research Journal Article Michael J. Kelly Christopher Marlowe and the Golden Age of England Poet, spy and playwright, Christopher Marlowe was the embodiment of the Elizabethan Golden Age. Marlowe’s work was the product of his ‘Erasmian,’ or Christian humanist, education, the state of affairs in England and his own ability and readiness to satirize the world around him. Marlowe and his fellow contemporaries were a testament to the development of English drama, its pinnacle at the end of the English Renaissance and its eventual decline and suppression at the outbreak of the English Civil War. Their work is historically important because it illustrates, in addition to the development of English theatre, the dramatic political and social events of the time through the public medium of the playhouse. Specifically, the development of the theatre helps explain key features of the English Renaissance such as the creation of English self-identity, adoption of humanistic ideal, the advancement of English over Latin, the role of religion, the intellectual development of a people and parliament and their gradual alienation from the monarchy, the ultimate assertion of parliamentary power, and Civil War. Furthermore, the development of commercial playwriting, acting, stage management and private investment in theatres, an aspect of life today taken for granted, began during this Golden Age in English drama. The history of English playwriting and performance stretches back to at least the ninth century trope ‘Alle Luia’ sung at Easter masses. However, post-classical Christian ritual performance itself probably developed from the ritualistic repetitions of the Empirical Roman Senate.1 This tradition, established in the Church at some point during the early formation of Roman successor states, likely spread to England from Spain, via Ireland, through missionaries.
    [Show full text]
  • Maths Trails
    Numeracy works for life ALM 6 Conference & LLU+ 7 National Numeracy Conference July 6th – July 9th, 2009 Maths Trails Purpose The purpose of a maths trail is to give an example of an experiential learning activity on mathematics in society (which could also be used / adapted for your own classes). Learning outcomes At the end of the trail you should have • experienced a maths trail • identified some aspects of numeracy in the real world • written some questions about the landmarks visited to ask another group • increased knowledge of some aspects of mathematics in history and culture Tasks a) Visit the suggested places on one of the identified trails in groups of 2/3. [Spend a maximum of 90 minutes on this activity – you do not have to visit all of them] b) Find as many places identified in the historical texts as you can. c) Identify aspects of numeracy from the Adult Numeracy Core Curriculum (use the overview overleaf). Make sure you have at least one example from each of N, MSS and HD. d) Write 5 numeracy related questions about the landmarks visited for others in the group. • four questions should be multiple choice question (each with 4 options) • one question should be open ended e) Be ready to feedback on how you felt about the activity and how useful a similar one might be for your learners. meaning-based learning in numeracy, interactive resources in numeracy, materials making, active learning 1 Numeracy works for life ALM 6 Conference & LLU+ 7 National Numeracy Conference July 6th – July 9th, 2009 The Recorde Trail Places on
    [Show full text]
  • A History of Elementary Mathematics, with Hints on Methods of Teaching
    ;-NRLF I 1 UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA PEFARTMENT OF CIVIL ENGINEERING BERKELEY, CALIFORNIA Engineering Library A HISTORY OF ELEMENTARY MATHEMATICS THE MACMILLAN COMPANY NEW YORK BOSTON CHICAGO DALLAS ATLANTA SAN FRANCISCO MACMILLAN & CO., LIMITED LONDON BOMBAY CALCUTTA MELBOURNE THE MACMILLAN CO. OF CANADA, LTD. TORONTO A HISTORY OF ELEMENTARY MATHEMATICS WITH HINTS ON METHODS OF TEACHING BY FLORIAN CAJORI, PH.D. PROFESSOR OF MATHEMATICS IN COLORADO COLLEGE REVISED AND ENLARGED EDITION THE MACMILLAN COMPANY LONDON : MACMILLAN & CO., LTD. 1917 All rights reserved Engineering Library COPYRIGHT, 1896 AND 1917, BY THE MACMILLAN COMPANY. Set up and electrotyped September, 1896. Reprinted August, 1897; March, 1905; October, 1907; August, 1910; February, 1914. Revised and enlarged edition, February, 1917. o ^ PREFACE TO THE FIRST EDITION "THE education of the child must accord both in mode and arrangement with the education of mankind as consid- ered in other the of historically ; or, words, genesis knowledge in the individual must follow the same course as the genesis of knowledge in the race. To M. Comte we believe society owes the enunciation of this doctrine a doctrine which we may accept without committing ourselves to his theory of 1 the genesis of knowledge, either in its causes or its order." If this principle, held also by Pestalozzi and Froebel, be correct, then it would seem as if the knowledge of the history of a science must be an effectual aid in teaching that science. Be this doctrine true or false, certainly the experience of many instructors establishes the importance 2 of mathematical history in teaching. With the hope of being of some assistance to my fellow-teachers, I have pre- pared this book and have interlined my narrative with occasional remarks and suggestions on methods of teaching.
    [Show full text]
  • Shakespeare's Medical Knowledge: How Did He Acquire
    Shakespeare’s Medical Knowledge: How Did He Acquire It? Frank M. Davis, M.D. ❦ OLUMES have been written on the subject of Shakespeare’s knowledge of legal language and issues, most of it by lawyers, all but a handful arguing strenuously that he had, as Lord Penzance stated, “a knowledge [of the law] so perfect and intimate that he was never incorrect and never at fault.” (Greenwood 375). A number of scholars have felt the same way about his knowledge of medicine. As E.K. Chambers said, “on similar grounds [referring to the law] Shakespeare has been repre- sented as an apothecary and a student of medicine” (1.23). Yet there have been only three comprehensive books written on the subject of Shakespeare’s knowledge of medicine: J.C. Bucknill (1860); R.R. Simpson (1959); and Aubrey C. Kail (1986); along with a handful of less important works (see Selected Bibliography, page 58) . Let’s examine what Shakespeare might have known about medicine in his day. First, it is important to note that there would be no comprehensive books on the history of medicine of the period until 1699, when Drs. Baden and Drake translated into English the L’Histoire du Physique of Le Clerc, and even this dealt primarily with the medicine of the Greeks and Arabs (Bucknill 10). Although there were at the time a number of essays or short works on narrow medical issues, true medical literature, like medicine itself, was still in its infancy, so that it would not have been possible for Shakespeare to have absorbed much from reading what was available to him in English.
    [Show full text]
  • Symbolism, Combinations, and Visual Imagery in the Mathematics of Thomas Harriot
    View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by Elsevier - Publisher Connector Historia Mathematica 34 (2007) 380–401 www.elsevier.com/locate/yhmat Symbolism, combinations, and visual imagery in the mathematics of Thomas Harriot Jacqueline Stedall The Queen’s College, Oxford, OX1 4AW, UK Available online 18 May 2007 Abstract The mathematical work of Thomas Harriot (c. 1560–1621) is distinguished by extensive use of symbolism and other forms of visual imagery and by systematic use of combinations. This paper argues that these characteristics of his mathematical writing were already observable in the mid-1580s, in the phonetic alphabet he devised to record the speech of American Indians. The paper presents several little-known examples of Harriot’s mathematics, demonstrating his use of symbolism both as a means of expression and as an analytic tool, and assesses Harriot’s work in relation to the broader 17th-century trend toward symbolization in mathematics. © 2007 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. Résumé Le travail mathématique de Thomas Harriot (c. 1560–1621) se remarque par l’usage qu’il fait de symbolismes et d’autres formes d’images visuelles, et par l’utilisation systématique de combinaisons. Cet exposé argumente que ces traits de son écriture mathématique s’observaient déjà à partir de 1585, dans l’alphabet phonétique qu’il avait conçu afin d’enregistrer la parole des Indiens d’Amérique. L’exposé présente plusieurs exemples peu connus des mathématiques de Harriot et montre son utilisation du symbolisme à la fois en tant que moyen d’expression et outil analytique.
    [Show full text]
  • BOOK REVIEWS BEFORE CALCULUS Janet Beery And
    BOOK REVIEWS BEFORE CALCULUS Downloaded from rsnr.royalsocietypublishing.org on January 2, 2011 304 Book Reviews 10, .... These are the triangular numbers in The edition offers a facsimile reproduc- a narrower sense, known since antiquity: tion of 40 pages of the manuscript source, each entry represents the number of dots in with an explanatory commentary on facing an equilateral triangle evenly filled with pages. No transcription is needed, because dots. And Harriot continues to produce Harriot’s writing is clearly readable in this rows of sums of the entries of the previous treatise, and his algebraic notation is row, the next row being 1, 4, 10, 20, .... nearly modern. Nevertheless the editors The numbers in such a table may be referred transcribe selected formulae into moder- to as triangular in a broader sense, and it nized notation to facilitate reading. Latin is in reference to this that Harriot’s prose, which is very rare, is transcribed treatise is headed a ‘doctrine of triangular and translated into English. numbers’. The edition also offers a 53-page essay Harriot then passes on to tables with that introduces the topic of triangular num- sequences whose first element may be any bers, difference tables and interpolation natural number. On reading these tables and thus provides a helpful preparation for backwards, that is, from a sequence of reading the manuscript itself. The essay sums to the sequence of its summands, the further discusses in considerable detail the sum table becomes a difference table. history of the reception and influence of Such difference tables can be produced Harriot’s manuscript treatise.
    [Show full text]
  • A Collection of Letters Illustrative of the Progress of Science in England
    www.e-rara.ch A collection of letters illustrative of the progress of science in England ... Halliwell, James Orchard London, 1841 ETH-Bibliothek Zürich Shelf Mark: Rar 358 Persistent Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.3931/e-rara-10048 Inhaltsverzeichnis www.e-rara.ch Die Plattform e-rara.ch macht die in Schweizer Bibliotheken vorhandenen Drucke online verfügbar. Das Spektrum reicht von Büchern über Karten bis zu illustrierten Materialien – von den Anfängen des Buchdrucks bis ins 20. Jahrhundert. e-rara.ch provides online access to rare books available in Swiss libraries. The holdings extend from books and maps to illustrated material – from the beginnings of printing to the 20th century. e-rara.ch met en ligne des reproductions numériques d’imprimés conservés dans les bibliothèques de Suisse. L’éventail va des livres aux documents iconographiques en passant par les cartes – des débuts de l’imprimerie jusqu’au 20e siècle. e-rara.ch mette a disposizione in rete le edizioni antiche conservate nelle biblioteche svizzere. La collezione comprende libri, carte geografiche e materiale illustrato che risalgono agli inizi della tipografia fino ad arrivare al XX secolo. Nutzungsbedingungen Dieses Digitalisat kann kostenfrei heruntergeladen werden. Die Lizenzierungsart und die Nutzungsbedingungen sind individuell zu jedem Dokument in den Titelinformationen angegeben. Für weitere Informationen siehe auch [Link] Terms of Use This digital copy can be downloaded free of charge. The type of licensing and the terms of use are indicated in the title information for each document individually. For further information please refer to the terms of use on [Link] Conditions d'utilisation Ce document numérique peut être téléchargé gratuitement.
    [Show full text]
  • Practical Optics and Polemical Purposes in Seventeenth-Century England
    Practical Optics and Polemical Purposes in Seventeenth-Century England James Everest UCL I, James Everest, confirm that the work presented in this thesis is my own. Where information has been derived from other sources, I confirm that this has been indicated in the thesis. 1 In memoriam Lisa Jardine 2 Contents Prefatory material 4 Introduction 7 Francis Bacon Dissolves Iron in Acid in the Dark 31 Thomas Hobbes Fires a Gun into a Lake 72 Robert Hooke Goes Back to Basics (and Draws the Same Conclusion) 115 Isaac Newton Waits for Robert Hooke to Die 163 Conclusion 208 Bibliography 213 3 Abstract What follows is a study of the prevalence and value of practical work in seventeenth-century English optics. I argue, firstly, that practical work – involving instruments and experiments – was a major aspect of the discipline at this time and, secondly, that a major purpose of this work was what I call ‘polemical’ in character. The first claim is directed at histories of seventeenth-century optics, which have tended to focus on the development of theories about light and vision, at the expense of the practical work that was such a prominent feature of the field. The second claim is directed at works on the ‘rhetoric of science’, which have tended to focus on a scientist’s deployment of various means, such as practical work, in a bid to persuade an audience that he or she is right about an aspect of the natural world, whereas my take on seventeenth-century natural philosophy is that practical work could serve another important function: it could act to persuade an audience that the ideas of a rival were wrong.
    [Show full text]
  • Wang2019.Pdf (2.062Mb)
    This thesis has been submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for a postgraduate degree (e.g. PhD, MPhil, DClinPsychol) at the University of Edinburgh. Please note the following terms and conditions of use: This work is protected by copyright and other intellectual property rights, which are retained by the thesis author, unless otherwise stated. A copy can be downloaded for personal non-commercial research or study, without prior permission or charge. This thesis cannot be reproduced or quoted extensively from without first obtaining permission in writing from the author. The content must not be changed in any way or sold commercially in any format or medium without the formal permission of the author. When referring to this work, full bibliographic details including the author, title, awarding institution and date of the thesis must be given. ‘Though their Causes be not yet discover’d’: Occult Principles in the Making of Newton’s Natural Philosophy Xiaona Wang PhD Thesis The University of Edinburgh April 2019 Abstract This thesis aims to provide a fuller understanding of a highly important but still controversial aspect of Isaac Newton’s natural philosophy: the role of occult, or at least non-mechanical, principles in his natural philosophy. The most obvious of these was his belief that gravity was an attractive force which operated across empty space, and so was an occult actio in distans. But there are other aspects of Newton’s work which would have been regarded by Cartesian contemporaries as occult; such as his belief that light can be an active component within bodies, that light and other matter can be converted into one another, and that bodies are not inert and passive but manifest various principles of activity.
    [Show full text]
  • HISTORIA MATHESEOS. EARLY DEVELOPMENT STAGE 4Th
    HISTORIA MATHESEOS. EARLY DEVELOPMENT STAGE HISTORY OF MATHEMATICS. HISTORIOGRAPHY Sinkevich G.I. Saint Petersburg State University of Architecture and Civil Engineering Vtoraja Krasnoarmejskaja ul. 4, St. Petersburg, 190005, Russia Summary. This article focuses on evolvement of the history of mathematics as a science and development of its methodology from the 4th century B.C. to the age of Enlightenment. Key words: methodology of the history of mathematics. The history of mathematics was evolving together with the mathematics itself. Its methodology gradually established. Having started with short excursuses in the history of certain issues and biographical details of scientists, the history of mathematics ended up with research using historical, textual, and mathematical methods, and achieved significant results. One would find wealth of diverse literature devoted to the history of mathematics – from popular literature to rigorous research. People in all countries studied the history of mathematics; it is included in education courses; it is interesting for all lovers of mathematics. 4th century B.C., Eudemus of Rhodes. Mathematics was laid down as a science in Ancient Greece, and the first famous work devoted to the history of mathematics was the History of Geometry (Γεωμετρικὴ ἱστορία) by Eudemus of Rhodes1, Aristotle’s student. This work was repeated in Comments to Euclid by Proclus (The Catalogue of Geometers) [1, p. 82-86]. Eudemus is known to have also written The History of Arithmetic and The History of Astronomy, none of which has survived to our days and are only mentioned by other authors. He concluded that arithmetic resulted from trade activities of the Phoenicians, and geometry, from geodetic activities of Egyptians.
    [Show full text]
  • Walter Warner (Ca
    WALTER WARNER (CA. 1557-1643) AND HIS NOTES ON ANIMAL ORGANISMS WALTER WARNER (ca.1557-1643) AND HIS NOTES ON ANIMAL ORGANISMS WALTER WARNER (ca. 1557-1643) EN ZIJN AANTEKENINGEN OVER DIERLIJKE ORGANISMEN (met een samenvatting in het Nederlands) Proefschrift ter verkrijging van de graad van Doctor aan de Rijksuniversiteit te Utrecht op gezag van de Rector Magnificus, Prof. Dr. J. A. van Ginkel, in gevolge het besluit van het College van Dekanen in het openbaar te verdedigen op vrijdag 23 oktober 1992 te 12.45 uur door Johannes Lambertus Maria Prins geboren op 11 december 1949 te Hillegom Utrecht 1992 Promotor: Prof. Dr. Mag. K. J. Schuhmann © Jan Prins, 1992 ISBN 90-393-0443-2 To F. M. B. TABLE OF CONTENTS Acknowledgements..........................................................................................................…..x Abbreviations--Notice .....................................................................................................…..xi General Introduction........................................................................................................…..xii 1. Warner’s Life and Legacy............................................................................................…..1 1.1. Fragments of a Biography...................................................................................1 1.2. The Literary Remains..........................................................................................17 1.2.1. From Warner to the British Library .....................................................17
    [Show full text]
  • Thomas Harriot and His World: Mathematics, Exploration, and Natural Philosophy in Early Modern England Edited by Robert Fox
    Thomas Harriot and His World: Mathematics, Exploration, and Natural Philosophy in Early Modern England edited by Robert Fox Farnham, UK/Burlington, VT: Ashgate, 2012. Pp. .ISBN 978–0–7546– 6969–9. Cloth $124.95 xviii+255 Reviewed by Scott Hyslop Indiana University [email protected] Thomas Harriot is an enticing figure for many historians of science. He seems to have done everything and did these things (novel insights in the theory of equations, optics, ballistics, and astronomy to name a few) well before those who achieved recognition for their discoveries. He trained men in navigation, was on board on voyages of exploration, and took part in establishing an English colony in the New World. He made a lexicon of Algonquian and published one of the earliest accounts of America in English. He watched his patron, Ralegh, be executed and performed experiments with his next patron, Henry Percy, the Earl of Northumberland, in the Tower of London, where Percy was imprisoned. He appears in the poetry of his friend George Chapman and seems to have associated with the same people as Christopher Marlowe. Harriot lived a fascinating life. He entices because he is intrinsically interesting and brilliant. But there is more that has drawn the historian to Harriot. Harriot is an underdog. Although his mathematics was excellent and novel, although he discovered the sine law of refraction before Descartes and Snell, although he observed the Moon through a telescope prior to Galileo, although he worked through significant problems in mechanics, he gained almost no recognition. He was largely forgotten and for many centuries assumed to be rather insignificant.
    [Show full text]